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UNIVERSITY  OF 

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AN  ORATION 


DELIVERED   IN 


PERSON  HALL,  CHAPEL  HILL, 

ON  THE  37x11  JUNE,  1827, 


THE   DAY 


PREVIOUS  TO   THE  COMMENCEMENT, 


UNDER   THE    APFOINTMENT   OF 


i 


BY    THE 


HON.  ARCHIBALD    D.  MURPHEY, 


SECOND  EDITION. 


RALEIGH : 

PRINTED    EY    WESTON    R.  GALES RALEIGH    REGISTER   OFFICE. 


1843. 


DIALECTIC  HALL,  Sept.  27th,  1S4S. 

The  following  was  the  first  Address  ever  delivered  before  the  two  Literary  Socioiie* 
of  our  University,  under  the  stipulation  between  them  upon  this  subject.  The  origirial 
edition,  published  in  1827,  was  a  large  one.  It  is  nevertheless  out  of  print,  and  tha 
desire  throughout  the  State  to  obtain  copies,  very  general.  This  fact  aflbrds  a  verj 
sufficient  reason  for  its  re-publication. 

Aside  from  this  consideration,  it  is  proper  to  say,  that  the  exellence  of  the  Address 
— admired  as'  it  is,  for  the  purity  and  elegance  of  its  style,  and  for  the  important  his- 
torical matter  which  it  affords— revered  as  the  last  tribute  of  the  Author  to  literature 
and  the  public — endorsed  by  the  complimentary  notice,  contained  in  the  following  Utter 
of  Chief  Justice  Marshall — renders  it  a  duty,  which  the  Society  owes,  not  only  to  the 
public,  but  to  herself. 

ROB'T.  H.  COWAN.  Jun.) 

ED.  D.  COVINGTON,         S  ComtMitle*. 

THOS.  RUFFINWuK.        S 


LETTER  FROM  CHIEF  JUSTICE  MARSHALL. 

Richmond,   October  6,  1827. 

Dear  Sir  :  Your  Oration  delivered  in  Person  Hall,  Cliapel  Hill,  reached  this 
place  during  a  visit  I  had  made  to  our  mountain  country.  It  was  taken  out  of  the  Post 
OlBce  and  placed  on  a  general  table,  among  a  number  of  papers  and  pamphlets  re- 
ceived during  my  absence,  and  was  not  perceived  till  to-day.  I  mention  this  circum- 
stance as  an  apology  for  having  permiUed  so  much  time  to  elapse  without  making  my 
acknowledgements  for  the  gratification  derived  from  its  perusal. 

I  take  a  great  deal  of  interest  in  your  portraits  of  the  eminent  men  of  North  Carolina, 
who  have  now  passed  away  from  the  theatre  of  action.  It  was  my  happiness  to  be 
acquainted  with  those  of  whom  you  speak  as  being  known  to  yourself,  and  I  feel  the 
justness  of  the  eulogies  you  have  bestowed  upon  them.  I  never  heard  Mr.  Davie  or 
Mr.  Moore  at  the  Bar,  but  the  impressions  they  both  made  upon  me  in  private  circles, 
vera  extremely  favorable,  and  I  think  you  have  given  to  the  character  of  each,  its 
true  coloring.  Neither  have  I  ever  heard  Mr.  Stanly,  but  I  have  known  him  also  in 
private,  and  it  was  not  possible  to  be  in  his  company,  without  noticing  and  being  struck 
with  his  general  talent,  and  most  especially  his  vivacity,  his  wit,  and  his  promptness. 
He  appeared  to  be  eminently  endowed  with  a  ready  elocution,  and  almost  intuitive 
perception  of  the  subjects  of  discussion.  With  Mr.  Haywood  and  Mr.  Henderson, 
I  was  well  acquainted,  and  have  heard  them  often  at  the  bar.  They  were  unques- 
tionably among  the  ablest  lawyers  of  their  day.  I  saw  not  much  of  Mr.  Duffie,  as  a 
professional  man,  but  thought  him  a  pleasing,  agreeable  gentleman.  You  omitted  one 
name  which  ranks,  I  think,  among  the  considerable  men  of  your  State.  It  is  that  of 
the  late  Judge  Iredell.  I  was  well  acquainted  with  him  too,  and  always  thought  him 
a  man  of  real  talent. 

In  the  rapid  sketch  you  have  taken  of  the  Colonial  Government,  some  circumstances 
excite  a  good  deal  of  surprise.  The  persecuting  spirit  of  the  high  Church  party  was 
Btill  more  vindictive  than  I  had  supposed  and  the  principle  of  limiting  your  laws  to 
two  years,  was,  I  believe,  peculim-  to  Carolina.  The  scarcity  of  books,  too,  which 
seems  to  have  prevailed  ever  since  the  revolution,  is  a  very  remarkable  fact.  Although 
I  concur  perfectly  in  the  opinion  you  express  that  much  more  advantage  is  to  be:de- 
rived  from  the  frequent  and  attentive  perusal  of  a  few  valuable  books,  than  from  indis- 
criminate and  multifarious  reading — that  cramming  injures  digestion — yet  some  books 
are  necessary  not  only  for  ornament  but  use. 

Allow  me  to  thank  you  for  the  pleasure  I  have  received  from  the  perusal  of  your 
Oration,  fori  must  suppose  that  I  am  indebted  to  yourself  for  this  mark  of  polite  atten- 
tion, and  to  express  my  particular  acknowledgements  for  the  flattering  notice  you 
have  taken  of  the  life  of  Washington.  That  work  was  hurried  into  the  world  with  too 
much  precipitation,  but  I  have  lately  given  it  a  careful  examination  and  correction. 
Should  another  edition  appear,  it  will  be  less  fatiguing,  and  more  worthy  of  the  char- 
acter which  the  biographer  of  Washington  ought  to  sustain. 

With  very  great  respect  and  esteem,  I  am,  sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

J.  MARSHALL. 

The  Hon.  Archibald  D.  Murphey,  Haw  River,  North  CaroUna. 


ORATION. 


The  Dialectic  and  Philanlliropic  Societies  of  the  University  of  North  Carolina, 
having  resolved  "that  some  individual  who  had  been  a  regular  member  of 
one  of  the  literary  Societies  attached  to  the  University,  should  be  chosen 
every  succeeding  year  to  deliver  a  public  Oration  in  the  College  Chapel  on 
the  day  proceeding  each  Anniversary  Commencement" — the  following  Ora- 
tion was  delivered  in  Person  Hall,  on  Wednesday  the  27th  June,  1827 — 
under  the  appointment  of  the  Dialectic  Society. 


The  Literary  Societies  of  this  Institution,  have  resolved  that  an 
Address  be  delivered  before  them  annually  by  some  one  of  their 
!nembers.  I'his  resolution,  if  carried  into  effect  in  the  spirit  in 
which  it  has  been  adopted,  will  be  creditable  to  the  Societies  and 
favourable  to  the  general  Literature  of  the  State.  It  is  now  more 
than  thirty  years  since  these  Societies  were  established,  and  all  the 
alumni  of  this  University  have  been  members  of  one  or  the  other 
of  them.  Upon  these  alumni  and  upon  others  v\'ho  shall  go  forth 
from  this  University,  our  hopes  must  chiefly  rest  for  improvement 
in  our  literary  chai-acter ;  and  their  zeal  for  such  improvement 
cannot  fail  to  be  excited  by  being  annually  called  together,  and 
one  of  them  selected  to  deliver  a  public  discourse  upon  the  progress 
and  state  of  our  literature,  or  some  subject  connected  therewith. 
The  Societies  have  conferred  on  me  an  unm.erlted  honour  by  ap- 
pointing me  to  deliver  the  first  of  these  discourses.  I  accepted  the 
appointment  with  pride,  as  it  was  an  evidence  of  their  esteem  ;  yet 
with  humility,  from  a  conviction  of  my  inability  to  meet  public 
expectation  ;  an  inability  of  which  I  am  conscious  at  all  times,  but 
particularly  so  after  a  painful  and  tedious  illness. 

Little  that  is  interesting  in  the  history  of  literatuture  can  be  ex- 
pected in  the  infancy  of  a  colony  planted  on  a  Continent  three 
thousand  miles  distant  from  the  mother  country,  in  the  midst  of  a 
wilderness  and  surrounded  by  savages.  Under  such  circumstan- 
ces civilization  declines,  and  manners  and  language  degenerate. 


"Wlicn  the  lirsl  putciit  was  i^raiilcd  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  iu  loS-J^ 
tlie  English  Language  liad  received  considerable  improvement. 
Spencer  iiad  published  his  Fairy  Queen,  Shakspeare  his  Plays,  Sir 
Philip  Sidney  his  Arcadia,  Knolles  his  General  History  of  the 
Turks,  and  our  Theology  had  been  enriched  by  the  eloquent  wri- 
tings of  Hooker.  This  improvement  was  not  confined  to  the  learn- 
ed ;  it  had  already  extended  itself  to  the  common  people,  particu- 
larly in  the  towns  and  villages,  and  the  language  of  the  first  colo- 
nists, no  doubt  partook  of  this  improvement.  Put  these  colonists 
v.'ere  all  adventurers;  they  joined  in  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  expedi- 
tion only  for  the  purpose  of  making  fortunes,  and  their  chief  hope 
was,  that  they  would  quickly  find  Gold  in  abundance,  and  return 
liome  to  enjoy  their  wealth.  This  delusive  hope  continued  for 
many  years  to  beguile  adventurers;  who  not  finding  the  treasure 
tlie}'  came  in  quest  of,  became  idle  and  profligate,  and  abandoned 
a  country  in  whicii  they  had  met  with  nothing  but  disappointment. 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  after  expending  a  large  part  of  his  estate  in 
attempts  to  settle  a  colony,  assigned  to  Thomas  Smith,  of  London,, 
and  his  associates,  the  privilege  of  trading  to  Virginia  and  of  con- 
tinuing the  colony.  Thomas  Smith  was  already  famous  in  the 
annals  of  chivah-ous  adventure,  and  was  destined  to  receive  an  in- 
crease of  fame  by  new  adventures  upon  this  Continent,  in  his  wars 
-with  the  Indians  and  in  his  deliverance  from  death  by  Pocahontas. 
Under  the  advice  of  Raleigli,  he  directed  his  efforts  to  the  waters 
of  the  Chesapeake,  and  there  planted  a  colony  which  becam.e  per- 
nianeiit,  and  from  which  Virginia  and  Carolina  were  peopled.  A 
new  charter  was  granted  to  Thomas  Smith  and  his  associates^ 
usually  called  the  London  Company,  in  1606,  and  enlarged  in  1609. 
This  company  continued  with  many  vicissitudes  of  fortune  until  the 
vear  1G26,  \whcn  it  was  dissolved.  The  history  of  the  colony  to 
the  time  of  this  dissolution  was  written  by  Thomas  Smith,  and  also 
by  Slith.  They  were  cotemporary  with  Lord  Clarendon,  who 
wrote  the  history  of  the  Rebellion  and  Civil  War  in  England  : 
Their  style  and  manner  of  writing,  and  the  public  papers  published 
by  the  President  and  Council  of  the  colony,  during  this  period,, 
evidence  great  improvement  in  our  language.  The  chaos  in  which 
it  lay  in  thfc  early  part  of  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  gradually  gave 
tvav  to  the  crdcr  and  method  uhich  good  sense  introduced  into. 
tvcry  pursuit :  the  pedantry  and  conceits  which  disfigured  our  lit- 


f-ratiire  in  Ilip  reign  of  James  tlie  first,  yieldoil  \a\hc  lufincncv  of 
good  taste.  Sir  Walter  Rulcigh  published  his  history  of  ihc  world, 
Lord  Bacon  his  historical  and  philosoplucal  works  and  moral  es- 
says, and  our  poetry  was  adorned  by  tiie  writings  of  Milton,  Dry- 
den,  Butler,  and  Otway.  Shortly  afterwards  came  Sir  Vv'illiam 
Temple,  Archbishop  Tillotson  and  others,  who  cave  facility  and 
grace  to  composition.  These  were  new  beauties  and  pleased  the 
nation  more  as  they  gave  to  style  the  charm  of  polished  conversa- 
tion. 

Whilst  the  literary  taste  of  the  nation  Avas  thus  improving-,  reli- 
gious intolerance  drove  from  England  a  great  number  of  Quaker?, 
Presbyterians  and  other  sectarians,  who  sought  refuge  in  the  Vir- 
ginia colony.  They  there  soon  met  with  the  same  persecution 
which  had  driven  them  from  their  native  counfiy.  They  were 
compelled  to  leave  the  colony  ;  and  Providence  directing  th.eir 
course  through  the  wilderness,  they  settled  near  Pasquotank  and 
Perquimons,  and  formed  the  germ  of  the  Carolina  Colony.  Manv 
of  them  were  Quakers,  and  their  descendants  continue  to  occupy 
that  district  of  country  to  this  dav. 

In  the  year  1663,  Charles  the  Second  granted  the  soil  and  seig- 
niory of  Carolina  to  eight  Lords  Proprietors:  who,  to  encouraj^c 
emigration,  held  out  favorable  terms.  They  promised  to  adven- 
turers gratuities  in  land  according  to  the  number  of  their  respec- 
tive families,  and  the  most  perfect  freedom  in  the  exercise  of  reli- 
gion. A  civil  government  was  established  purely  representative; 
a  circumstance,  to  which  may  be  attributed,  in  a  great  degree,  the 
republican  feelings  and  opinions  which  soon  characterized  the  col- 
ony, and  which  led  to  the  plan  of  civil  polit}^  under  which  we  now 
live.  When  the  Lords  Proprietors  discovered  that  the  colony  was 
likely  to  become  numerous  and  powerful,  they  endeavored  to  re- 
strain the  civil  and  religious  liberty  which  they  had  promised  to 
emigrants :  they  established  a  new  form  of  government,  declaring 
their  object  to  be  "  to  make  the  government  of  the  colony  agree  as 
nearly  as  possible  with  the  monarchy  of  which  it  was  apart,  and  to 
avoid  erecting  a  numerous  democracy."  This  plan  of  government 
was  the  joint  work  of  Lord  Ashley  and  the  celebrated  John  Locke; 
and  its  chief  aim  was  to  appoint  orders  of  nobility,  establish  a  pow- 
erful aristocracy  and  check  the  progress  of  republican  opinions  and 
manners.     A  mere  ridiculous  plan  for  th,e  government  of  tb.e  cole- 


ny  could  not  have  been  devised.  The  People  were  accustomed  to 
equality  and  self-government;  a  rank  of  nobility  was  odious  to 
them,  and  they  disregarded  laws  which  they  had  not  been  consult- 
ed in  making.  The  prosperity  of  the  colony  declined,  public  mo- 
rals relaxed,  the  laws  lost  their  energy,  a  general  spirit  of  discon- 
tent grew  up  and  ripened  into  rebellion  :  the  governors  became 
corrupt,  and  the  people  idle  and  vicious.  The  attempt  to  give  ef- 
fect to  the  new  plan  of  government  entirely  failed,  and  the  Lords 
Proprietors  abolished  the  plan  as  unsuited  to  the  condition  of  the 
colony.  Two  factions  then  arose;  one  that  wished  to  establish  a 
high-toned  prerogative  government;  the  other  consisted  of  High 
Churchmen,  who  gained  the  ascendancy,  and  by  their  violence 
brought  the  government  into  contempt.  Their  object  was  to  de- 
prive all  dissenters  of  the  right  of  suffrage,  to  curtail  their  civil 
rights,  and  render  their  situation  so  oppressive  as  to  compel  them 
to  leave  the  colony.  A  party  of  French  Hugunots  had  emigrated 
to  the  colony,  to  enjoy  that  liberty  of  conscience  and  of  worship 
which  was  denied  to  them  in  their  native  country.  These  people, 
entitled  by  their  sufierings  no  less  than  by  their  Protestanism,  to 
the  friendship  and  hospitality  of  the  colonists,  were  treated  with  a 
cruelty  that  disgraced  the  High  Church  party.  Being  aliens,  they 
were  incapable  of  holding  lands  until  they  were  naturalized  ;  and 
this  party  having  the  ascendancy  in  the  Assembly,  not  only  refused 
to  naturalize  them,  but  declared  their  marriages  by  ministers  not 
ordained  by  Episcopal  bishops,  illegal,  and  their  children  illegiti- 
mate. The  progress  of  this  violent,  persecuting  spirit,  was  checked 
by  the  wise  and  conciliating  measures  adopted  by  Governor  Arch- 
dale.  He  assumed  the  government  of  the  colony  in  1695 ;  he  was 
a  Quaker,  and  possessed  in  an  eminent  degree  the  philanthropy 
and  command  of  temper,  for  which  this  sect  has  been  distinguished. 
He  was  one  of  the  Proprietors  of  the  Province,  and  by  the  mere 
force  of  his  character  overawed  the  turbulent,  and  restored  good 
order.  To  this  excellent  man  our  ancestors  are  indebted  for  thfit 
tolerant  provision  in  their  militia  law,  which  we  strll  retain  as  a 
part  of  our  Code,  for  granting  exemption  to  men  who  were  res- 
trained by  religious  principles  from  bearing  arms. 

The  religious  intolerance  of  the  High  Church  party  was  exerted 
with  new  energy,  after  the  departure  of  Governor  Archdale  from 
the  Province.     This  party  passed  laws,  which  the  Lords  Proprie- 


tors  ratified,  to  establisli  ihe  Church  of  England,  and  to  disable 
dissenters  from  being  members  of  the  Assembly.  This  was  in  di- 
rect violation  of  the  chartered  rights  of  the  colonists.  The  dissen- 
ters remonstrated  to  the  House  of  Lords  ;  and  Queen  Anne,  upon 
the  advice  of  that  body,  caused  these  laws  to  be  repealed.  But  the 
High  Church  party,  steady  to  their  purpose,  varied  their  mode  of 
attack  ;  the  spirit  of  intolerance  grew  with  the  growth  of  the  Pro- 
vince ;  emigrations  from  the  Virginia  colony  and  the  patronage  of 
the  Lords  Proprietors,  gave  to  this  party  a  decided  majority  in  the 
Assembly;  they  levied  a  tax  on  each  precinct  for  the  support  of 
a  minister,  and  built  churches.  Protestant  dissenters  were  only 
permitted  to  worship  in  public,  and  there  to  be  subject  to  the  rules 
and  restrictions  contained  in  the  several  acts  of  Parliament.  Qua- 
kers were  permitted  to  affirm  instead  of  swearing;  but  they  could 
not  hold  an  office  of  profit  or  trust,  serve  as  jurors,  or  give  evidence 
by  affirmation  in  any  criminal  case.  This  contest  between  the 
High  Church  party  and  the  dissenters,  produced  an  hostility  of  feel- 
ing which  time  has  softened,  but  which  the  lapse  of  more  than  a 
century  has  been  insufficient  to  allay.  This  contest  however,  pro- 
moted freedom  of  thought  and  enquiry  among  the  people  ;  it  shar- 
pened their  understandings,  and  in  a  great  degree  supplied  the 
place  of  books  for  instruction.  At  that  time  there  were  few  books 
in  the  colony:  the  library  of  a  common  man  consisted  of  a  bible 
and  a  spelling  book ;  the  lawyers  had  a  few  books  on  law,  and 
the  ministers  a  few  on  theological  subjects,  and  sometimes  a  few 
of  the  Greek  and  Roman  classics:  for  they,  particularly  the  Pres- 
byterian ministers,  were  generally  schoolmasters — and  with  them 
the  poor  young  men  of  the  colony,  who  wished'to  preach  the  Gos- 
pel or  plead  the  law,  received  their  humble  education.  The  turbu- 
lent spirit  of  the  colonists,  their  leaning  towards  republicanism  and 
sectarianism,  had  induced  the  Lords  Proprietors  to  forbid  the  es- 
tablishment of  Printing  Presses  in  the  colony;  and  Sir  William 
Berkley,  who  had  the  superintendance  of  this  colony  in  1661,  gave 
thanks  to  Heaven  that  there  was  not  a  Printing-Office  in  any  of 
the  Southern  Provinces. 

What  improvement  in  literature  could  be  expected  among  a  peo- 
ple who  were  thus  distracted  by  faction,  destitute  of  books,  and  de- 
nied the  use  of  the  press  ?  Notwithstanding  all  these  discourage- 
ments and  disadvantages,  however,  the  literature  of  the  colony  eyi- 

2 


10 

dently  advanced.  The  public  papers  of  that  period  are  written 
in  aconspicuous, nervous  style, corresponding  in  force  of  expression, 
purityof  languageand  perspicuity  of  arrangement,  with  similar  wri- 
tings in  the  reigns  of  Charles  the  Second,  King  William  and  Queen 
Anne.  The  intelligence  of  the  common  people  and  the  ability  and 
learning  of  the  men  who  managed  the  affairs  of  the  colony  in  that 
period,  are  matters  of  surprise  and  astonishment  to  any  one  ac- 
quainted with  the  disadvantages  under  which  the  colony  labored. 
The  Assembly  and  the  Courts  of  Justice,  sat  in  private  houses; 
the  acts  passed  by  the  Assembly  were  not  printed  ;  they  were  read 
aloud  to  the  people  at  the  first  Court  after  they  were  passed  ;  they 
were  in  force  only  for  two  years,  and  every  biennial  Assembl}^  was 
under  the  necessity  of  re-enacting  all  that  were  thought  useful. — 
There  was  no  printing  press  in  the  colony  before  the  year  1746,  at 
whichtime  the  condition  ofthe  statute  book  required  a  revisal,and  the 
public  interest  called  aloud  for  the  printing  of  it.  The  learning  and 
literature  of  the  colony  were  confined  to  the  lawyers  and  ministers 
ofthe  Gospel,  most  of  whom  were  educated  in  England  ;  and  it 
was  owing  to  this  circumstance  chiefly,  that  the  literature  of  the 
colony  advanced  so  steadily  with  that  ofthe  mother  country. 

The  legislation  of  the  colony  began  to  assume  form  and  system 
in  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne  ;  and  in  the  year  after  her  death,  1715, 
the  Assembly  passed  sixty-six  acts,  most  of  which  had  been  fre- 
quently re-enacted  before.  Many  of  those  acts  remain  in  force  to 
this  day,  and  are  monuments  of  the  political  wisdom  and  legal 
learning  of  that  time.  In  style  and  composition  they  are  equal  to 
any  part  of  our  statute  book ;  they  are  the  first  statutes  of  the  col- 
ony that  have  come  down  to  our  time. 

In  the  year  1729,  the  Lords  Proprietors,  with  the  exception  of 
Lord  Granville,  surrendered  to  the  Crown  their  right  to  the  soil 
and  seigniory  of  North-Carolina  ;  and  from  that  time  the  popula- 
tion and  prosperity  of  the  colony  rapidly  increased.  But  in  a  few 
years,  the  great  contest  commenced  between  the  prerogative  of  the 
Crown  and  the  liberty  ofthe  colonial  subject ;  which  contest  even- 
tually terminated  in  the  American  Revolution.  This  contest  gra- 
dually introduced  into  North-Carolina,  and  into  all  the  British  co- 
lonies which  took  part  in  it,  a  style  in  composition  which  distin- 
guishes this  period  from  all  others  in  English  or  American  litera- 
ture :  a  style  founded  upon  and  expressive  of  exalted  feeling.     Ed- 


11 

ucalion  embellishei]  it  and  gave  to  it  new  beauties  ;  but  ifs  force  and 
impressive  character  were  perceptible  in  the  writings  and  speeches 
of  ordinary  men.  What  age  or  nation  ever  produced  compositions 
superior  to  the  addresses  of  the  Continental  Congress  ?  When  or 
where  shall  we  find  a  parallel  to  the  correspondence  of  General 
Washington  and  the  General  Officers  of  the  American  Army  ?  The 
style  of  these  addresses  and  of  the  correspondence,  is  the  stjde  of 
high  thought,  and  of  lofty,  yet  chastened  feeling;  and  reminds  the 
reader  of  the  finest  s])ecimens  of  compositions  in  Tacitus,  and  of  the 
correspondence  of  Cicero  and  his  iViends  after  the  death  of  Pompey. 

Tliere  is  something  in  the  style  and  sentiment  of  the  writings  of 
this  i)eriod  which  gives  to  them  a  magic  charm,  and  seems  to  con- 
secrate the  subjects  on  which  it  is  employed  ;  a  something  connect- 
ed with  the  finest  perceptions  of  our  nature.  Tiie  reader  is  every 
moment  conscious  of  it,  yet  knows  not  how  to  explain  it.  The  high 
moral  feeling  and  virtuous  sympathy  which  characterized  the  Ame- 
rican revolution,  have  given  to  it  a  hallowedness  of  character.  It 
is  fortunate  for  us  that  Chief-Justice  JNlarshall  has  written  the  his- 
tory of  this  revolution.  Whatever  may  be  the  defects  of  this  work 
the  history  of  our  revolution  will  never  be  so  well  written  again  : 
no  work  on  that  subject  will  ever  appear,  so  well  calculated  to  pro- 
duce an  useful  efiect  upon  its  readers.  Marshall  was  a  soldier  of 
the  revolution,  and  possessed  the  finest  genius  ;  he  was  the  perso- 
nal friend  of  the  Commander  in  Chief;  he  partook  in  all  the  feel- 
ings of  the  officers  of  the  army;  and  iie  has  transfused  into  his 
work  that  exalted  sentiment  which  animated  his  compatriots  ia 
arms.  This  sentiment  is  strongly  pourtrayed  in  the  writings  of^the 
INIarquis  de  Chastelleuxand  Count  Rochambeau,  two  French  general 
officers  in  the  American  service,  and  in  the  correspondence  of  the 
Commander  in  Chief  and  the  American  general  officers.  But  it 
can  never  be  embodied  into  an  historical  work,  by  a  man  who  did 
not  feel  it  in  ail  its  force  in  the  American  camp.  Literary  ele- 
gance disappears  before  such  moral  beauty.  There  is  no  historical 
work  in  any  language,  that  can  be  read  with  so  much  advantage 
such  moral  effect,  by  American  youth,  as  Marshall'^  Life  of  Wash- 
ington. They  should  read  it  with  diligence,  and  read  it  often. 
They  will  never  rise  from  the  perusal  of  it,  without  feeling  fresk 
incentives  both  to  public  and  private  virtue. 

The  progress  of  the  style  which  marked  the  period  of  the  Ame- 


12 

rican  revolution,  may  be  traced  in  North-Carolina  from  the  admin- 
istration of  Governor  Dobbs.  It  had  become  the  common  style  of 
the  leading  men  of  the  colonj^,  before  the  meeting  of  the  Continen- 
tal Congress  in  1774.  The  correspondence  and  public  papers  of 
Samuel  Johnston  and  Josej)h  Hewes  of  Edenton,  of  William  Hoo- 
per and  Archibald  McClaine,  of  Wilmington,  of  Richard  Caswell  of 
Kinston,  of  Thomas  Burke  of  Hillsborough,  of  Francis  and 
Abner  Nash  of  Nevvbern,  upon  the  great  subjects  which  then  en- 
grossed the  public  attention,  do  honor  to  the  literature  of  North- 
Carolina  at  that  time.  They  wrote  upon  matters  of  business  ; 
business  which  concerned  the  welfare  of  the  nation  ;  they  wrote 
as  they  felt ;  and  their  compositions  coming  warm  from  the  heart, 
are  free  from  affectation  or  pedantry,  and  equally  free  from  that 
prolixity  which  is  the  vice  of  modern  composition. 

When  these  men  disappeared,  our  literature  in  a  great  degree 
disappeared  with  ihem.  The  war  had  exhausted  the  resources  of 
the  State,  and  ruined  the  fortunes  of  many  individuals  ;  we  had  no 
schools  for  the  education  of  our  youth  ;  few  of  our  citizens  were 
able  to  send  their  sons  to  the  northern  colleges  or  to  Europe  to  be 
educated.  Two  individuals,  who  received  their  education  during 
the  war,  were  destined  to  keep  alive  the  remnant  of  our  literature 
and  prepare  the  public  mind  for  the  establishment  of  this  Univer- 
sity. These  were  William  R.  Davie  and  Alfred  Moore.  Each  of 
them  had  endeared  himself  to  his  country  by  taking  an  active  part 
in  the  latter  scenes  of  the  war  ;  and  when  public  order  was  restor- 
ed and  the  courts  of  justice  were  opened,  they  appeared  at  the  bar 
where  they  quickly  rose  to  eminence,  and  for  many  years  shone  like 
meteors  in  North-Carolina.  They  adorned  the  courts  in  which 
they  practised,  gave  energy  to  the  laws  and  dignity  to  the  admin- 
istration of  justice.  Their  genius  was  different,  and  so  was  their 
eloquence.  Davie  took  Lord  Bolingbroke  for  his  model,  and  Moore, 
Dean  Swift;  and  each  applied  himself  with  so  much  diligence  to 
the  study  of  his  model,  that  literary  men  could  easily  recognise  in 
the  eloquence  of  Davie,  the  lofty,  flowing  styleof  Bolingbroke  ;  and 
in  that  of  Moore,  the  plainness  and  precision  of  Swift — they  roused 
the  ambition  of  parents  and  their  sons ;  they  excited  emulation 
among  ingenious  youth:  they  depicted  in  glowing  colours  the  ne- 
cessity of  establishing  a  public  school  or  university,  in  which  the 
vouno' men  of  the  State  could  be  educated.     The  General  Asseni- 


13 

bly  resolved  to  found  an  university.  I  was  present  in  the  House 
of  Commons,  when  Davie  addressed  that  body  upon  the  bill  grant- 
ing a  loan  of  money  to  the  trustees  for  erecting  the  buildings  of 
this  university  ;  and  although  more  than  thirty  years  have  since 
elapsed,  I  have  the  most  vivid  recollections  of  the  greatness  of  his 
manner  and  the  powers  of  his  eloquence  upon  that  occasion.  In 
the  House  of  Commons  he  had  no  rival,  and  upon  all  great  ques- 
tions which  came  before  that  body,  his  eloquence  was  irresistible. 
The  genius  and  intellectual  habits  of  Moore  fitted  him  for  the  bar 
rather  than  a  deliberative  assembly.  Public  opinion  was  divided 
upon  the  question  whether  he  or  Davie  excelled  at  the  bar.  Moore 
was  a  small  man,  neat  in  his  dress  and  graceful  in  his  manners  ; 
his  voice  was  clear  and  sonorous,  his  perceptions  quick,  and  his 
judgment  almost  intuitive  ;  his  style  was  chaste  and  his  manner  of 
speaking  animated.  Having  adopted  Swift  for  his  model,  his  lan- 
guage was  always  plain.  The  clearness  and  energy  of  his  mind  en- 
abled him  almost  without  an  effort,  to  disentangle  the  most  intricate 
subject,  and  expose  it  in  all  its  parts  to  the  simplest  understanding. 
He  spoke  with  ease  and  with  force,  enlivened  his  discourses  with 
flashes  of  wit,  and  where  the  subject  required  it,  with  all  the  bitter- 
ness of  sarcasm.  His  speeches  were  short  and  impressive  :  when 
he  sat  down,  every  one  thought  he  had  said  every  thing  that  he 
ought  to  have  said.  Davie  was  a  tall,  elegant  man  in  his  person, 
graceful  and  commanding  in  his  manners ;  his  voice  was  mellow 
and  adapted  to  the  expression  of  every  passion  ;  his  mind  compre- 
hensive, yet  slow  in  its  operations,  when  compared  with  his  great 
rival.  His  style  was  magnificent  and  flowing ;  and  he  had  a  great- 
ness of  manner  in  public  speaking,  which  suited  his  style,  and  gave 
to  his  speeches  an  imposing  effect.  He  was  a  laborious  student, 
arranged  his  discourses  with  care,  and  where  the  subject  suited  his 
genius,  poured  forth  a  torrent  of  eloquence  that  astonished  and  en- 
raptured his  audience.  They  looked  npon  him  with  delight,  lis- 
tened to  his  long,  harmonious  periods,  caught  his  emotions,  and 
indulged  that  ecstacy  of  feeling,  which  fine  speaking  and  powerful 
eloquence  alone  can  produce.  He  is  certainly  to  be  ranked  among 
the  first  orators,  and  his  rival  Moore,  among  the  first  advocates, 
which  the  American  nation  has  produced. 

Whilst  these  two  men  were  in  the  zenith  of  their  glory,  another 
man  arose  at  the  bar  in  North-Carolina,  who  surpassed  them  both 


14 

in  profoundness  of  legal  learning,  and  on  many  occasions  success- 
fully contended  witli  them  for  the  palm  of  forensic  eloquence. 
This  was  the  late  John  Haywood.  He  had  few  advantages  from 
nature  ;  his  person  was  indifferent,  his  voice  harsh,  his  manners 
uncouth,  his  education  limited.  He  was  a  stranger  to  the  graces, 
and  had  few  of  the  accomplishments  of  an  orator.  But  he  had  a 
powerful  and  intrepid  mind,  which  he  cultivated  hy  tlie  most  labo- 
rious study.  The  fame  of  Davie  and  jSIoore  inspired  his  ambi- 
tion, and  he  was  tortured  by  a  desire  of  entering  the  lists  with  these 
champions  of  the  bar.  He  was  conscious  of  his  del"ects,  and  sought 
to  gain  the  ascendancy  by  superior  legal  learning.  He  came  to 
the  bar  with  confidence  of  high,  intellectual  powers  and  profound 
knowledge  of  ihe  law;  and  in  a  little  time  acquired  a  reputation 
that  placed  him  at  the  head  of  his  profession  in  this  State,  and  gave 
him  rank  among  the  ablest  common  lawyers  in  the  Union. 

Cotemporary  with  Haywood,  were  several  gentlemen  of  the  bar 
now  living,  and  several  who  are  dead,  who  have  sustained  the  cha- 
racter of  their  profession  for  legal  learning  and  general  literature. 
Among  the  latter  were  William  Duffey  and  Archibald  Henflerson. 
Duffey  was  the  child  of  misfortune.  Thrown  upon  the  world  with- 
out friends  and  without  fortune,  accident  introduced  him  in  his  ear- 
ly youth  to  the  acquaintance  of  John  Haywood,  Esq.  Ihe  venerable 
Treasurer  of  this  State,  who,  in  the  exercise  of  that  benevolence 
for  which  his  whole  life  has  been  conspicuous,  gave  him  employ- 
ment, enabled  him  to  prosecute  his  studies,  and  prepare  himself 
for  the  bar.  Duffey  had  an  opportunity  of  witnessing  the  splendid 
displays  of  Davie  and  Moore,  and  he  profited  by  their  example. 
He  devoted  a  large  portion  of  his  time  to  polite  literature,  and  ac- 
quired a  more  elegant  style  in  composition  than  any  of  his  cotem- 
poraries  in  North-Carolina.  He  had  a  slight  impediment  in  his 
speech,  but  by  laborious  perseverance,  he  succeeded  in  regulating 
the  tones  and  modulations  of  his  voice  in  such  wa)^,  that  this  impe- 
diment often  seemed  to  be  an  ornament  to  his  delivery.  He  was 
one  of  the  few  men  of  our  countr\^  who  could  read  well ;  he  studied 
the  art  of  reading,  and  his  friends  will  long  remember  the  pleasure 
they  have  received  from  hearing  him  read.  In  his  addresses  at 
the  bar,  he  was  always  impressive,  particularly  upon  topics  con- 
nected with  virtuous  and  benevolent  feeling.  He  had  a  vigorous 
mind  and  feelings,  attuned  to  the  finest  emotions.     I  remember  him 


15 

with  fond  affection.  He  was  my  friend,  my  preceptor,  my  patron. 
He  instructed  me  in  the  science  oi  the  law,  in  tlie  art  of  managing 
causes  at  the  bar,  and  in  the  still  more  difficult  art  of  reading  books 
to  advantage.  I  wish  it  were  in  my  power  to  render  to  his  memory 
a  more  permanent  honor  than  this  passing  tribute  of  respect  and 
gratitude  ! 

Henderson  survived  Duffey  many  years,  and  obtained  the  first 
standing  at  the  bar  of  this  State.  He  was  devoted  to  his  profession, 
and  upon  the  whole,  was  the  most  perfect  model  of  a  lawyer  that 
our  bar  has  produced.  It  was  late  in  life  before  he  turned  his  at- 
tention to  polite  literature,  and  he  never  acquired  a  good  style  in 
composition.  Yet  his  style  and  manner  of  speaking  at  the  bar  were 
extremely  impressive.  I  shall  here  speak  of  him  as  I  did  in  a 
sketch  of  his  character  published  shortly  after  his  death.  In  him 
the  faculties  of  fine  mind  were  blended  with  exalted  moral  feelings. 
Although  he  was  at  all  times  accessible,  he  seemed  to  live  and  move 
in  an  atmosphere  of  dignity.  He  exacted  nothing  by  his  manner 
yet  all  approached  him  with  reverence  and  left  him  with  respect. 
The  little  quarrels  and  contests  of  men  were  beneath  him  ;  his  was 
the  region  of  high  sentiment,  and  there  he  occupied  a  standing  that 
was  pre-eminent.  The  constitution  and  jurisprudence  of  his  coun- 
try, were  his  favorite  studies.  Profound  reflection  had  general- 
ised his  ideas,  and  given  to  his  political  and  legal  learning  a  scien- 
tific cast.  No  man  better  understood  thetheory  of  our  government ; 
no  man  more  admired  it,  and  no  man  gave  more  practical  proofs 
of  hi?  admiration.  The  sublime  idea  that  he  lived  under  a  govern- 
ment of  laws,  was  forever  uppermost  in  his  mind,  and  seemed  ta 
give  a  coloring  to  all  his  actions.  As  he  acknowledged  no  domi- 
nion but  that  of  the  laws,  he  bowed  with  reverence  to  their  authority, 
and  taught  obedience  no  less  by  his  example  than  his  precept.  To 
the  humble  officer  of  justice  he  was  respectful  •,  the  vices  of  private 
character  were  overlooked,  when  the  individual  stood  before  him 
clothed  with  judicial  authority.  In  the  County  Courts,  where  the 
Justices  of  the  Peace  administer  the  law,  he  was  no  less  respectful 
in  his  deportment,  than  in  the  highest  tribunal  of  the  State.  He  con- 
sidered obedience  to  the  laws  to  be  the  first  duty  of  a  citizen  ;  and 
it  seemed  to  be  the  great  object  of  his  prot'essional  life,  to  inculcate 
a  sense  of  this  duty,  and  give  to  the  administration  of  the  laws  an 
impressive  character.     He  was  conscious  of  his  high  standing,  and 


in 

never  committed  himself,  nor  put  bis  reputation  at  risk.  He  al- 
ways came  to  the  trial  of  his  causes  well  prepared  ;  and  if  the  state 
of  his  health,  or  his  want  of  preparation  were  likely  to  jeopardise 
his  reputation  in  the  management  of  his  client's  cause,  he  would 
decline  the  trial  until  a  more  favorable  time.  The  courts  in  which 
he  practised,  and  his  brother  lawyers,  understood  the  delicacy  of 
his  feelings  upon  this  point  so  well,  that  they  extended  to  him  the 
indulgence  he  required  ;  and  a  knowledge  of  this  part  of  hischarac- 
ter,  gave  confidence  to  his  clients  and  attracted  crowds  of  people  to 
hear  his  speeches.  When  he  rose  at  the  bar,  no  one  expected  to 
hear  common  place  matter ;  no  one  looked  for  a  cold,  vapid  or 
phlegmatic  harangue.  His  great  excellence  as  a  speaker  consisted 
in  an  earnestness  and  dignity  of  manner,  and  strong  powers  of 
reasoning.  He  seized  one  or  two  strong  points,  and  these  he  illus- 
trated and  enforced.  His  exordium  was  short  and  appropriate  ; 
he  quickly  marched  up  to  the  great  point  in  controversy,  making 
no  manoeuvre  as  if  he  were  afraid  to  approach  it,  or  was  desirous 
of  attacking  it  by  surprise.  The  confidence  heexhibited  of  success 
he  gradually  imparted  to  his  hearers  ;  he  grew  more  warm  and 
earnest  as  he  advanced  in  his  argument,  and  seizing  the  critical 
moment  for  enforcing  conviction,  he  brought  forth  his  main  argu- 
ment, pressed  it  home  and  sat  down.  As  he  advanced  in  life,  he 
seemed  more  and  more  anxious  that  the  laws  should  be  interpreted 
and  administered  by  the  rules  of  common  sense.  He  lost  his  re- 
verence for  artificial  rules  ;  he  said  the  laws  were  made  for  the 
people,  and  they  should  be  interpreted  and  administered  by  rules 
which  they  understood,  whenever  it  was  practicable  :  that  common 
sense  belonged  to  the  people  in  a  higher  degree  than  to  learned 
men,  and  to  interpret  laws  by  rules  which  were  at  variance  with 
the  rules  of  common  sense,  necessarily  lessened  the  respect  of  the 
people  for  the  laws,  and  induced  them  to  believe  that  courts  and 
lawyers  contrived  mysteries  in  the  science  merely  for  the  purpose 
of  supporting  the  profession  of  lawyers.  He  said  the  rules  of  pe- 
dantry did  not  suit  this  country  nor  this  age  ;  that  common  sense 
had  acquired  dominion  in  politics  and  religion,  and  was  gaining  it 
in  the  law;  that  judges  and  lawyers  should  have  the  independence 
and  magnanimity  to  strip  ofi"  the  veil  of  mystery  from  every  branch 
of  the  science,  and  simplify  and  make  it  intelligible,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, to  the  understanding  of  the  common  people. 


17' 

In  all  free  States,  eloquence  has  preceded  poetry,  history  and 
philosophy.  By  opening  the  road  to  wealth  and  fame,  it  subserves 
the  purposes  of  avarice  and  ambition  ;  society  is  led  captive  by  its 
charms,  and  sometimes  bound  in  fetters  by  its  powers.  In  this 
State,  the  Bar  and  the  General  Assembly  have  been  thus  far  the 
theatre  for  its  display.  It  is  the  branch  of  literature  which  we 
have  cultivated  with  most  success,  and  in  which  we  have  not 
been  far  behind  any  of  our  sister  Slates.  Not  long  after  Davie  left 
the  House  of  Commons,  there  appeared  in  that  body  another  man, 
whose  genius  we  have  all  admired,  and  whose  misfortune  we  all 
deplore.  I  hope  I  may  be  permitted  to  speak  of  him,  although  he 
be  still  living :  Providence  has  withdrawn  him  from  public  view, 
and  he  has  been  followed  by  the  regrets  and  tears  of  his  country- 
men. I  speak  of  John  Stanly,  Esq.  For  more  than  twenty  years 
he  has  been  the  ornament  of  the  Bar  and  of  the  Houseof  Commons. 
Small  in  stature,  neat  in  dress,  graceful  in  manner,  with  a  voice 
well  modulated,  and  a  mind  intrepid,  disciplined  and  rich  in  know- 
ledge, he  became  the  most  accomplished  orator  of  the  State.  His 
style  of  eloquence  was  more  various  than  that  of  any  of  his  prede- 
cessors. Such  were  the  versatility  of  his  genius  and  the  extent  of 
his  acquirements,  that  he  could  at  pleasure  adopt  the  lofty,  flowing 
style  of  Davie,  or  the  plain,  simple,  energetic  style  of  Moore.  He 
could  rouse  the  noble  passions,  or  amuse  by  his  wit  and  pleasan- 
try. He  excelled  in  appropriate  pauses,  emphasis  and  gesticula- 
tion. No  speaker  was  ever  more  fortunate  in  accommodating  his 
manner  to  his  subject :  and  on  all  important  subjects  he  had  a 
greatness  of  manner  which  small  men  seldom  acquire.  He  resem- 
bled Moore  in  the  quickness  of  his  perceptions  and  the  intuition  of 
his  judgment.  His  talents  and  knowledge  were  always  at  com- 
mand, and  he  could  bring  them  to  bear  with  force  and  effect  as  oc- 
casion required,  without  any  preparation.  His  mind  was  so  well 
disciplined  and  so  happily  toned,  that  it  was  always  ready  for  ac- 
tion. He  possessed  the  rare  talent  of  conversing  well ;  his  con- 
versation was  the  perpetual  flow  of  sober  thought  or  pleasant  hu- 
mour, and  was  heightened  in  its  efiect  by  his  happy  style  and 
gracefulness  of  manner.  He  was  among  the  few  orators  of  this  or 
any  country,  whose  style  and  manner  in  conversation  equalled  his 
style  and  manner  in  public  speaking. 

Few  of  the  men  whom  I  have  named  had  the  advantage  of  a  ii- 


baral  etlueatioii :  they  rose  to  eminence  by  the  force  of  their  genius 
and  a  diligent  application  to  their  studies.     The  number  of  our  li- 
terary men  has  been  small,  compared  with  our  population  ;  but  this 
is  not  a  matter  of  surprise,  when  we  look  to  the  condition  of  the 
State  since  the  close  of  the  revolutionary  war.     AVhen  the  war  end- 
ed, the  people    were   in  povert}',  society  in  disorder,  morals  and 
manners   almost  prostrate.     Order  was    to  be  restored  to    society 
and  energ}''  to  the  laws,  before  industry  could  repair  the  fortunes 
of  the  people;  schools  were  to  be  established  for  the  education  of 
youth,  and  congregations  formed  for  preaching  the  gospel,  before 
the  public  morals  could  be  amended.     Time  was  required  to  effect 
these  objects  ;  and  the    most   important  of  them,  the  education  of 
youth,  was  tlie  longest  neglected.     Before  this  university  went  in- 
to operation,   in   1795,  there  were  not  more  than  three  schools  in 
the  State,  in  which  the  rudiments  of  a  classical  education  could  be 
acquired.     The  most  prominent  and  useful  of  these   schools  was 
kept  by   Dr.  David  Caldwell,  of  Guilford  county.     He  instituted 
it  shortly  after  the  close  of  tlie  war,  and  continued  it  for  morethaa 
thirty  years.     The   usefulness  of  Dr.  Caldwell  to  the  literature  of 
North-Carolina  will  never  be  suflicicnlly  appreciated:  but  the  op- 
porluuities  of  instruction  in  his  scliool  were  very  limited.     There 
was  no  library  attached  to    it;   his  students  were  supplied  with  a 
few  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  classics,  Euclid's  Elements  of  INIathe- 
matics,  and  JNIartin's  Natural  Philosoph_y.     Moral  Philosophy  was 
taught  from  a  syllabus  of  lectures   delivered    by  Dr.  WitherspooH 
in  Princeton  CollegfJ.     The  students  had  no  books  on  history  or 
miscellaneous  literature.     There  were  indeed  very  few  in  the  State, 
except  in  the  libraries  of  lawyers  who  lived  in  the  commercial  towns. 
I  well  remember,  that  after  completing  my  course  of  studies  under 
Dr.  Caldwell,  I  spent  nearly  two  years  without  finding  any  books 
to  read,  except  some  old  works  on  theological  subjects.     At  length, 
I  accidentally    mot  with  Voltaire's  history  of  Charles   the  twelfth 
of  Sweden,  an  odd  volume  of  Smollett's  Roderic  Random,  and  an 
abridgement   of  Don  Quixote.     These  books  gave  me  a  taste  for 
reading,  which  I  had  no  opportunity  of  gratifying  until  I  became  a 
student  in  this  university  in  the  year  1796,     Few  of  Dr.  Caldwell's 
students  had  better   opportunities   of  getting  books  than  myself  ; 
and  with  these  slender  opportunities  of  instruction,  it  is  not  surpris- 
ing that  so  few  i^ccame  eminent  in  the  liberal  professions.     At  this 


d-ay,  when  libraries  are  establisiied  in  all  our  luwns,  when  every 
professional  man.  aiid  every  respectable  gentleman,  has  a  collection 
of  books,  it  is  diflicult  to  conceive  the  inconveniences  under  which 
young  men  labored  thirty  or  forty  years  ago. 

But  has  the  number  of  our  distinguished  men  increased  as  the 
facilities  of  instruction  have  increased?  They  certainly  have  not. 
Of  the  number  of  young  men  who  have  been  educated  at  this  uni- 
versity, how  few  have  risen  toeminence  in  any  branch  of  literature  ! 
Their  number  bears  no  proportion  to  the  increased  means  of  instruc- 
tion which  they  have  had.  To  what  causes  is  this  to  be  attributed  ? 
The  causes  are  numerous,  but  we  will  notice  only  a  few  of  the  most 
operative.  In  the  first  place,  the  plan  of  education  in  all  our  schools, 
particularly  in  our  preparatory  schools,  is  radically  defective  :  too 
much  time  is  spent  upon  syntax  and  etymology  ;  the  time  of  the 
student  is  wasted,  aiul  his  genius  frittered  away  upon  words,  in- 
stead of  being  developed  and  polished  by  the  spirit  of  the  write.r. 
Instead  of  directing  the  study  of  the  Gi'eek  and  Latin  classics  tO' 
the  developcment  of  his  faculties  and  the  improvement  of  his  taste, 
]\istimcis  taken  up  in  nice  attentions  to  words,  arrangement  of 
clauses  and  construction  of  periods.  With  his  mind  thus  injured, 
lie  enters  upon  the  study  of  the  physical  and  moral  sciences,  and 
long  accustomed  to  frivolous  investigation,  he  never  rises  to  the  dig- 
nity of  those  sciences,  nor  understands  the  methods  b}^  which  their 
truths  are  illustrated.  In  the  next  place,  too  many  studies  are 
crowded  upon  the  student  at  once;  studies  which  have  no  ana- 
logy nor  connexion.  In  the  third  place,  the  time  allotted 
for  completing  a  course  of  scientific  study  is  too  short;  the 
student's  mind  fiags  under  the  severe  labours  imposed  upon  it. 
The  elasticity  of  the  mind  ought  never  to  be  weakened  ;  if  it 
be,  the  student  thenceforward  hobbles  through  his  course,  and 
is  often  broken  down  before  he  gets  to  the  end  of  it.  In  tho 
fourth  place,  too  many  studies  are  pursued,  and  none  are  pursued 
well  :  the  student  acquires  a  smattering  of  languages  and  sci- 
ences, and  understands  none  of  them.  This  encyclopedical  kind 
of  learning  is  destructive  of  the  powers  of  the  mind,  and  unfits  it  for 
deep  and  severe  investigation.  In  the  last  place,  the  multitude  of 
books  is  a  serious  injury  to  most  students.  They  despair  of  read- 
ing many  of  them,  and  content  themselves  with  reading  reviews  of 
tlie  most  celebrated.     At  length  the  valuable  hooks  are  placed  a\yay 


20 

carefully  in  a  library,  and  newspapers,  pamphlets  and  other  fugi- 
tive productions,  take  up  all  their  time  for  reading.  There  is  noth- 
ing in  this  course,  which  teaches  youth  how  to  think  and  investigate. 
The  great  object  of  education  is  to  give  to  the  mind  activity  and 
energy  :  this  object  can  never  be  attained  by  a  course  of  studies 
which  distract  its  attention  and  impair  its  elasticity. 

The  evils  which  I  have  mentioned  are  not  confined  to  the  schools 
of  North-Carolina;  they  exist  in  nearly  all  the  schools  of  the  Uni- 
on. Massachusetts  has  taken  the  lead  in  correcting  them,  and 
introducing  methodsof  instruction  founded  upon  the  philosophy  of 
the  mind.  The  state  of  science  and  of  literature  among  her  people, 
shews  the  happy  effect  of  these  changes.  The  trustees  of  this  uni- 
versity have  resolved  to  make  similar  changes,  to  remodel  the  plan 
of  studies,  and  introduce  new  methods  of  instruction.  But  whate- 
ver changes  may  be  made  in  our  plans  of  education,  young  men, 
who  are  desirous  of  being  either  useful  or  eminent  in  active  life, 
should  recollect  this  truth,  that  the  education  received  at  a  collegeor 
university,  is  intended  only  as  a  preparation  of  the  mind  for  receiv- 
ing the  rich  stores  of  science  and  general  knowledge,  which  subse- 
quent industry  is  to  acquire.  He  who  depends  upon  this  prepara- 
tion alone,  will  be  like  a  farmer  who  ploughs  his  land  and  sows  no 
<^rain.  The  period  of  useful  study  commences,  when  a  young  man 
finishes  his  collegiate  course.  At  that  time  his  faculties  have  ac- 
quired some  maturity  from  age,  and  some  discipline  from  exercise ; 
and  if  he  enter  with  diligence  upon  the  study  of  a  branch  of  science, 
and  confine  his  attention  to  that  branch,  he  soon  becomes  astonish- 
ed at  his  progress,  and  at  the  increase  of  his  intellectual  powers. 
Let  him  avoid  reading  or  even  looking  into  a  variety  of  books. 
Nine-tenths  of  them  are  worse  than  useless;  the  reading  of  them 
produces  a  positive  injury  to  the  mind  ;  ihey  not  only  distract  his 
attention,  but  blunt  his  faculties.  Let  him  read  only  works  of  men 
of  genius;  read  but  few  books  and  read  them  often.  Take  two 
voung  men  of  equal  minds  and  similar  genius  ;  put  into  the  hands 
of  one,  Shakespeare's  Plays,  Milton's  Paradise  Lost,  Don  Quixote 
and  Gil  Bias  ;  and  into  the  hands  of  the  other,  all  the  hundred  vo- 
lumes of  dulness  which  fill  our  libraries  ;  and  at  the  end  of  twelve 
months,  mark  the  difference  between  them.  The  first  will  be  like 
the  high-spirited  steed  that  is  ready  for  the  course  ;  the  other  will 
be  encumbered  with  a  load  of  useless  ideas,  his  faculties  weakened, 
and  the  bright  tints  of  his  genius  obscured. 


31 

The  next  great  object,  after  the  improvement  of  the  intellectual 
faculties,  is  the  forming  of  a  moral    character.     This  is  by  far  the 
most  difficult  part  of  education  :  it  depends  upon  the  doctrines  of 
morals,  and  the  philosophy  of  the  passions  and  feelings.     Little 
success  has  heretofore  attended  it,  either  in  the  schools  of  Europe 
or  this  country.     The  moral  character  of  youth  has  been  generally 
formed  by  their  ])arents,  by  friends  who  gained  their  confidence, 
or  by  their  pursuits  in   active  life.     The  morality  thus  taught  is 
purely  practical ;  it  has  reference  to  no  abstract  truths  ;  it  looks 
only  to  the  passions  and  feelings  of  our  nature  under  the  variety 
of  circumstances  in  which  we  may  be  placed  in  society,  and  the 
duties  which  thence  result.     The  science  of  Ethics  taught  in  our 
schools  is  a  cold,  speculative  science  ;  and  our  youth  are  misled  by 
substituting  this  for  practical  morality.     It  is  to  be  regretted,  that 
we  have  no  work  on  moral  philosophy,  which  treats  of  Ethics 
purely  as  a  practical  science;  and  it  is  remarkable,  that,  notwith- 
standing the  great  improvement  that  has  been  made  within  the  last 
century  in  metaphysical  and  physical  science,  and  the  liberal  turn 
of  philosophical  enquiry  which  has  been  introduced,  the  science  of 
Ethics  remains  stationary.     The  question,  "what  is  the  foundation 
of  moral  obligation,"  is  not  more  satisfactorily'^  answered  now  than 
it  was  two  centuries  ago.     And  until  the  principles  of  Ethics  shall 
be  disentangled  from  the  speculative  doctrines  of  Theology,  inter- 
woven by  the  schoolmen  and  monks  in  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth centuries,  and  those  principles  be  traced  to  the  constitution 
and  condition  of  men,  having  for  their  object  the  developement  of 
his  social  rights  and  duties,  we  shall  have  to  regret  that  the  most  sub- 
lime of  all  the  sciences  remains  imperfect.     It  seems  to  be  reserved 
for  the    philosophers  of  Scotland  to    trace   those   principles  and 
make  this  developement;  and  we  wait  with  impatience    for  the 
promised  work  of  Dugald  Stuart  on  this  subject.     But  any  system 
of  morals  which  we  may  study  as  a  science,  will  never  have  much 
effect  in  forming  our  moral  character.     We  must  look  to  our  con- 
stitutional  temperament,  to  our    passions  and    feelings  as  influ- 
enced by  external  circumstances;  and  for  rules  of  conduct,  we  must 
look  to  the  sermons  and  parables  of  Christ:  they  are  worth  more 
than  all  the  books  which  have  been  written  on  morals  ;  they  ex- 
plain, and  at  the  same  time  apply  that   pure   morality   which   is 
founded  upon  virtuous  feeling. 


Young  Gentlemen  of  the  Dialectic 

and  Philanthropic  Societies : 

As  you  have  conferred  on  me  the  honor  of  dellverhig  this 
first  public  Address  under  your  joint  resolution,  I  hope  you  will 
permit  me,  before  I  sit  down,  to  say  a  few  words  upon  a  subject 
connected  with  the  usefulness  of  your  Societies  and  the  interests 
of  the  University.  I  speak  to  3^ou  in  the  spirit  of  fellowship,  and 
along  acquaintance  with  your  Societies  enables  me  to  speak  with 
confidence.  I  well  know  the  influence  which  your  Societies  can 
exercise  in  maintaining  the  good  order  of  this  institution,  in  sus- 
taining the  authority  of  the  faculty,  in  suppressing  vice,  and  pro- 
moting a  gentlemanly  deportment  among  the  students.  Every 
respectable  student  of  proper  age,  is  a  member  of  one  or  the  other 
of  your  Societies,  and  feels  more  mortification  at  incurring  its  cen- 
sure than  that  of  iho  faculty.  This  feeling  is  the  fulcrum  on  which 
the  power  of  the  Societies  ought  to  be  exerted.  Let  me  entreat 
you,  then,  more  particularly  as  you  propose  hereafter  to  occupy  a 
higher  ground  than  you  have  heretofore  done,  to  exert  that  power 
in  sustaining  the  discipline  of  the  University,  in  encouraging  indus- 
try and  good  manners,  and  in  suppressing  vice.  The  united  eflorts 
of  the  two  Societies  can  do  more  in  effecting  these  objects  than  the 
authority  of  the  trustees  or  faculty.  A  high  responsibility  rests 
upon  you  :  your  honor  and  the  welfare  of  the  University  demand 
its  faithful  discharge. 

In  a  short  time  you  will  complete  3'our  course  of  studies  at  this 
place,  and  bid  adieu  to  these  Halls,  to  act  your  parts  upon  the  great 
theatre  of  active  life.  Your  friends  and  your  country  have  much 
to  hope,  much  to  expect  from  you.  Devote  yourselves  with  dili- 
gence to  your  studies.  \Vhen  you  shall  have  finished  your  course, 
here,  remember  that  your  education  is  just  commencing;  I  mean 
that  education  which  is  to  fit  you  for  acting  a  distinguished  part 
upon  the  theatre  of  your  country.  The  pursuits  and  the  honors  of 
literature  lie  in  the  same  road  with  those  of  ambition  ;  and  he  who 
aspires  to  fame  or  distinction,  must  rest  his  hopes  upon  the  improve- 
ment of  liis  intellect.  Julius  Csesar  was  one  of  the  most  accomplish- 
ed scholars  of  Rome,  and  Najjoleon  Buonaparte  of  France.  In 
our  own  country,  we  lately  have  seen  one  of  our  most  eminent 
scholars  raided  to  the  Chief  Magistracy  of  the  Nation,  ?.nd  the  great- 


23 

est  orator  of  the  age  made  his  prime  minister.  I  speak  not  here 
of  politics:  literature  has  no  factions  ;  good  taste  no  parties.  Re- 
member, my  young  friends,  that  most  of  the  men  who  thus  far  have 
shed  a  lustre  upon  our  country,  had  not  one-half  the  opportunities 
of  education  which  you  have  enjoyed.  They  had  to  rely  upon  their 
genius  and  industry.  Genius  delights  to  toil  with  difficulties;  they 
discipline  its  powers  and  animate  its  courage:  it  contemns  the 
honors  which  can  be  obtained  without  labor,  and  prizes  only  those 
which  are  purchased  by  noble  exertion.  Wish,  not,  therefore,  for 
a  life  of  ease;  but  go  forth  with  stout  hearts  and  determined  reso- 
lution. As  yet  you  little  know  what  labour  and  perseverance  can 
eflfect,  nor  the  exalted  pleasures  which  honorable  exertion  gives  to 
an  ingenuous  mind.  May  God  take  charge  of  you;  lead  you  in 
the  ways  of  uprightness  and  honor;  make  you  ?dl  useful  men,  and 
ornaments  to  your  country  ! 


fi 


^ 


